Real-time marketing – what is it for and how to use it in your business?

Real-time marketing – what is it?

Real-time marketing is marketing happening here and now. Popular content, trends and topics that are talked about change very quickly. To use these to promote your product, you need good reflexes and the ability to connect your brand to the event in a meaningful way, i.e. brilliance. After all, in real-time marketing there is no room for explaining concepts and developing strategies. It is a one-shot that should be understood by the recipient in a second. Otherwise, it will be scrolled through and will be lost in the jumble of competitors’ posts.

Real-time marketing is meant to capture the attention of the viewer. It does not matter whether it is a graphic on Facebook, a text on a blog or a video. The intention is always the same – to attract interest and stand out. Effective RTM campaigns not only arouse curiosity, thus building social media reach, but also have a real impact on the positive image of the company and sales of products or services.

It is worth considering whether this kind of loose communication related to real-time marketing will suit your company. If so, you will need to spend time monitoring the media and tracking the trends that attract the largest audiences. The most difficult task is, of course, connecting the event to the brand, but for this, unfortunately, there are no proven tricks as every company is different. This otherness, however, offers a large field of possibilities and means that a company’s communication can be truly original through this.

How are brands using real-time marketing?
We have put together some of the most interesting examples of RTM for you.

Ikea and Hodor

Everyone who has watched ‘Game of Thrones’ remembers very well the last scene in which Hodor appeared. Thanks to memories and visions, viewers then learned that the name Hodor, which was also the only word spoken by the character, came from ‘Hold the door’, a command that Bran Stark had just given to Hodor when they were attacked by the Others in the tunnel. Ikea took advantage of this almost immediately and published a post advertising a door wedge called ‘Hodor’.

Ikea and the launch of the new Mac Pro

Another example of the IKEA chain’s actions was the brand’s reaction to Apple’s new Mac Pro, which looks deceptively like a grater.

Zywiec and the return of Pokémon

It was a real craze! The return of Pokémon and the interest in the game, which encouraged people to go all out, exceeded the expectations of even the biggest enthusiasts of the project. And since Pokémon is talked about not only in Poland, but all over the world, why not take advantage of it. Zywiec did it really brilliantly.

KFC and Dad Robert

How do you combine a fast food restaurant with an athlete who is famous for his very healthy lifestyle? In this case, all it took was the information that Robert Lewandowski was going to become a father, a creative idea and a quick brand response time. The play on words and the unique context of the situation made the reception of this ad very positive.